Quartile rating: 4.5/10 · 1 rating
Bizarre nightmares plague Regan MacNeil four years after her possession and exorcism. Has the demon returned? And if so, can the combined faith and knowledge of a Vatican investigator and a research specialist free her from its grasp?
Exorcist II: The Heretic is widely regarded as one of the worst sequels ever made. The plot is incoherent and borderline incomprehensible, lurching between hypnotic regression sessions, African locust mythology, and pseudo-scientific faith healing with no coherent throughline. Richard Burton brings some gravitas to his role but appears lost in the material, and the rest of the cast struggles with the nonsensical script. Cinematography has a few visually ambitious moments — John Boorman attempts some striking imagery — but they feel misapplied. The film has little novelty given it largely retreads possession territory while squandering any unique ideas it introduces. The ending is chaotic and unsatisfying, failing to deliver on any of the narrative threads the film half-heartedly establishes.